The afterlife
by WineRedRoses
Summary: Tammy and Andy leave district 1 to go to their former house. But they don't get far. They find an unconscious girl lying on the road. OC/Doyle
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own 28 Weeks later**

**Hi everybody. This is my first story. First of all, I have to say that English is not my native language, so sorry if there are any mistakes. I try my best to avoid mistakes. I hope you will enjoy reading. Reviews are always welcomed :) **

Prologue

Breathing heavily, she ran through the empty streets of London. Her lungs were burning, but her fear was so big that she could ignore that easily.

Even a pause of five seconds could mean her death. She did not want to die, especially not in this way. Not as a monster who lost his mind and who is only full of greed to devour people. She would rather prefer a final death than to be an uncontrolled monster.

At the thought of being a virus infested zombie she speeded up.

Raquelle Cooley was not a really good person, but a petty criminal. At least, she was not a monster. The black-haired could not help it that she was a criminal. I t was apparently in her family. Her father was also a criminal. And he was the reason she has not disappeared from London along with all the others who were evacuated. Luckily, no one cared for a petty criminal like her. No one was looking for her. But she really does not give a damn.

Raquelle could not get away from London without him, so she has gone in search of her father. Not a particularly successful search. All the time she was busy running away from the infested zombies.

She had no opportunity to look for him even though she knew where she has to begin. Yet, she was thinking of him every night, at any rate, when the lovely zombies gave her the chance to.

"Bloody hell", she swore as she fled into a small alley. Her back pressed against the brick wall of the building while she was focusing on the sounds that surrounded her.

She could hear nothing else than her own breath. She let herself fall on the wall slowly, still leaning her back against it.

The power left her slowly but surely. It was exhausting to be on the run all the time. Only now she noticed that her lungs were burning and that her legs suddenly felt as hard as stone.

The black-haired would have probably given up long ago if her father would not have been. Only for him, she fled. Only for him, she wanted to stay alive. She wanted to find him so that they could get out of here together. It was all for him.

Again, she listened attentively, but there was no sound. Not even birds chirping or the wind blowing. Absolutely nothing.

Melancholy took hold in her minds. Raquelle was born in the home of her father which was Philadelphia in the United States, but she has lived in London since she was nine years old.

Beautiful memories are not only connected with Philadelphia, but also with London. London was not only her mother´s hometown, but also hers.

She loved London, has always loved it. But now her home was just left and lifeless. Dead as the corpses that lay scattered all over the streets.

No children laughter anymore, no more tumult, no teenagers who were hanging out together after school. Nothing.

Everything was dead. Maybe even her father. What made her believe that he is still alive? What made her believe that he is waiting for her? What made her believe that he is not a fucking zombie ready to tear her up?

She swallowed hard at that thought.

Stop thinking about it, she ordered herself. Her hands ran across her face.

What should she do? What the fuck should she do? Just keep this up until she meets her dad and then leave London with him and live a good life as if nothing had happened? Should she continue to believe in a happy ending?

Bloody hell, this is real life and not a fucking fairy tale!, she thought.

A crash startled her.

Crap, she thought. Without losing any time, she jumped to her feet and sprinted. She was not even sure if she was being followed, but she would not be stupid enough to risk a glance backwards. She had to run. That was what she did all day. Running for her life.

She raced through the corpse-strewn streets, dodging the dead bodies.

Her heart was beating fast and hard against her chest. But she ignored it.

Her lungs were burning again, like the rest of her adrenaline pumped body. But she ignored it.

Her legs ached at every single step she took. But she ignored it.

Her desperate gaze sought the area off for the best escape route.

Just one second of inattention was all. Just a second was necessary so that her foot struck against a hard dead body. Just one second in which Raquelle stumbled over a corpse.

It was impossible for her to avoid the collision. Her head crashed hard against the curb. She felt the sharp pain in her head for only a few seconds, until everything around her finally went black.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1

"Hey, Andy", she whispered as she shook him gently on his shoulder. He turned away from her with a grunt, his face hidden in the pillow.

Sighing, she leaned closer to him. "Andy. Andy get up."

Her voice was only a very faint whisper. She was afraid that someone could hear her or more precisely that her father could hear her and caught her in the act.

Her younger brother grunted again and only shook off her hand.

"Andy come on, get up. We have to go now."

Her grip got a little stronger. She proceeded to shake his shoulder unrelentingly. She had to get him awake, no matter how. All they had to look out for was not to getting caught by anyone. But that should not be a problem. The sun was about to rise now. Not even the birds were chirping. It was early in the morning. That explained why Andy was to get awake so hard, but she had no choice.

If they wanted to leave District one, they would have to do it at these times. A time, when no one was awake, when no one had to go to work, except the soldiers of course.

Finally, her little brother turned to face her. His eyes were half-closed, but he tried hard to look at her, his raised hand rubbing one of his eyes.

"Tammy, what's going on?", he asked a little too loud, but still tired.

"Shhh!", she hissed, laying a finger on her lips, "not so loud."

"What's wrong", ha asked, suddenly wide awake, lifting his upper part of his body with a jerk and looked at her anxiously.

She gave him a gentle smile to calm him.

He was so small. So young and innocent. It was not fair that he had to experience this. It was not fair that anyone had to experience this; the virus which destroyed the lives of many, including theirs; the virus that had killed people or had turned them into monsters. It has cost the life of her mother.

She remembered the feeling as their father had told them that her mother no longer was among them. Her world collapsed. A stab in her heart and the sharp pain had recalled her that the situation was real and not a horrible nightmare. Her father had actually said that her mother was dead.

Maybe it had been foolish of her to believe that once they were back in London they would be reunited with their parents and would be a happy family again. That was what she had hoped for, what she had wanted more than anything else.

Even though she had shown little reaction when her father had been telling how her mother had died, it had hurt her incredibly. But she was not allowed to be weak. She had to be strong, not only for herself but also for her brother. She will protect him, no matter how. She would not let anything happen to him.

At least they had their father. At least he was there for them.

Full of enthusiasm, he talked about his job and had assured that they could live a normal life again. As normal as possible.

But they could make it together. They could get a life again in district one, in their hometown London which she had missed in Spain.

Home, she thought, still smiling gently while her brother looked worried. She brushed his hair lovingly.

"We're going home", she whispered softly, lost in old memories.

"What do you mean?" he asked slightly worried, his voice a whisper.

When she had said this sentence the last time, they had been about to return to London.

"You'll see. But come now, we have to hurry, before everyone else get up", she whispered to him as she stood up and grabbed a few garments of Andy in order to throw them against him.

"Get dressed quickly", she ordered while sneaking out of the room to check on her father, who was hopefully asleep.

"Come on, Andy, hurry up, otherwise they'll catch us" she called over her shoulder. Her gaze darted around the area. Concentrated, she sucked in every detail of her surroundings. Any carelessness could ruin their plan, which was hard enough. She could not imagine what would be waiting for them when they will return to District one.

At the moment, she could simply not think about it because she was too busy with scouring the area for people who could possibly prevent their little excursion.

Just some armed soldiers who certainly did not expect any people. A fact which made their little flight from District one easier.

Uneasiness ran throughout her body, but she ignored it, after all she gave her little brother a promise. That he will never forget their mother.

A quick glance over her shoulder and a small show of hands, before she ran off followed by her brother

Quietly, she lumbered forward, jumped over on the outer railing of the big bridge.

Her heart seemed to stand still, her breath caught as they sneaked past the soldiers. It was not until they landed on the other side out of District one, she could take a deep breath.

Relief was reflected in her eyes as her lips formed a smile. She turned her head to Andy, who smiled as he kept eye contact with her.

Both of them started running at the same moment. Boisterously laughing, they ran through the streets of their old home.

Satisfied, Tammy looked at Andy who was spreading his arms and shouting in joy.

"Yeah! Wuuuuh! London is mine", he cried out in happiness.

Freedom! This word ran through her mind.

She felt free. The feeling of the wind which was blowing in her face and waving her hair back, this feeling was freedom. Something she had not felt for a long time, neither in the refugee camp nor in District one. Especially not in District one which was full of heavily armed soldiers and snipers on the roofs everywhere.

Tammy was not stupid, of course, she had noticed the snipers who were stationed for their safety. Still, it was a creepy feeling to know that you are observed.

The streets were empty, the buildings looked dilapidated, rusty cars lay scattered and partially flipped on the roads.

"Come on Andy," she shouted, laughing over her shoulder as she viewed a scooter. Exactly what we need, she thought. Her steps quickened, her smile grew bigger.

As she approached the scooter, she slowed her pace gradually.

Her eyes had captured something else than the scooter. Her breath caught as she realized what that "something" was.

"What's up, Tammy?" she heard the voice of her brother, who suddenly appeared next to her.

But she was not able to respond, her eyes glued on something..

"Is that ...?" She heard the slightly trembling voice of Andy. As if hypnotized, she stared at a body, a girl who lay lifeless on the street.

Her eyes looked at her critically. Estimated by Tammy, she was about 25 years old.

"Is she an infected?" Andy finished his question that he could not ask a few seconds before. Tammy could feel his body pressed closer to hers.

Automatically she ran her hand over his head to calm him.

Suddenly the young woman gasped, her body slightly twitching, causing Tammy and Andy to jump in fright.

Tammy's eyes focused the body. With narrowed eyes she looked at something that had drawn her attention. With slow steps she approached her without minding her environment or to the cries of her brother.

Tammy stopped a few inches in front of the unconscious girl, her eyes concentrating on something under her head.

A red gleaming and metallic smelling liquid.

Blood! She is bleeding, Tammy thought. Reluctantly, because she did not know if she should help or run away, she remained motionless. Maybe she was infected and would tear her and her brother when she wakes up. But perhaps she was not infected and urgently in need of medical help. Insecure what she was supposed to do, her eyes went back to her brother, who looked scared.

"Tammy?" He whispered with a trembling voice.

She turned her attention back to the bleeding girl. It was silent, so they could hear the faint irregular breaths of her.

What should she do?

Before she could answer her own question, she heard something.

Loud noises, strong winds and a babble of voices. Then masked soldiers appeared, grabbed her and dragged her away.

"She needs help," she suddenly decided as she saw one of the soldiers pointed his gun at the girl.

"She needs help," she screamed again before she was dragged along and the body of the young unconscious woman disappeared from her view.

"She needs help," stabbed the shrill desperate voice of Tammy in her ears.

"What's the matter?" asked General Stone, with whom she had fought earlier, because two children were missing and she accused him again that it was irresponsible to bring children to the District one.

"Sir, a young woman is lying on the street here. Unconscious. Estimated early to mid-twenties. Black hair. She seems to have an injury at the back of her head and is bleeding. What are we supposed to do with her? "

Scarlet Levy watched the mimic of the general. His hard features showed little as he answered.

"Shoot her."

"What?" Scarlet screamed in shock, "No! She needs help. ", She remembered the panicked cry of Tammy.

"She might be infected."

"Or not. Haven't you said that the last infected had died several weeks ago, "she asked in a provocative voice, her eyes challenging him.

"Shall we risk bringing her to District one so that the disease can spread here?"

"The virus is transferable only through body fluids such as saliva and blood, not through the air. You can bring her to my office and I examine her. "

"No," the general insisted, his gaze firmly on her.

"Do you want to take the risk of killing an innocent? Bring her to me. Afterwards you can still shoot her "insisted the medic, her eyes just as determined as Stone`s.

He looked into her eyes while she was trying not to be intimidated by him.

"Bring the woman in the medical laboratory. If there is any little sign of trouble, you will shoot immediately. Send a Delta sniper to medicine laboratory, "he ordered his gaze still on Scarlet.

"It is now up to your responsibility."

"Doyle. Move your ass into the medical lab ", someone informed him a few minutes ago.

It was not bothering him; in contrast, he was glad that finally something was happening because he was bored. Who would not, if all he has to do is staying on a roof and observing people?

He was glad for the change. Not that he had looked forward to something terrible, when he caught the kids as they were breaking out, something might happen to them, but now it was getting interesting; at least more interesting than before.

He was informed that the children found a girl who was unconscious and bleeding on the streets. Major Scalet Levy, the chief medical officer, wanted to avoid her immediate execution on the spot, for whatever reason.

Better for me, thought Doyle with a smile, maybe he was lucky and she was infected. Then he could have the pleasure to kill one of these monsters.

When he entered the lab of the Chief medical officer, she was giving two soldiers instructions.

"Put her there on the camp bed."

After the soldiers had drained the lifeless body, they pushed their way past Sergeant Doyle, who nodded to them.

His eyes went to the "thing" that was brought here by his colleagues. Everything he saw from the distance was black hair.

Officer levy seemed to ignore him. She was busy preparing herself to take off her blood.

He approached them, his gun firmly in his grip and fixed to the body. As he approached, he could see the face of the young woman. All of a sudden, he felt guilty. Guilty, because he had all of his previous thoughts, such as the luck to shoot her and the hope that she was infected. He regretted all of them. He felt ashamed that he had the desire to get the chance to shoot her because she was so young. And quiet beautiful not to forget. Swallowing hard, he looked at the soft facial features of the girl. Her black hair was hanging in her face. Dry blood was in her pitch-black hair. Dirt was not only on her clothes, but also on her honey-colored skin. Her white shirt was covered with blood stains and her jeans were torn in several places.

His gaze ran searchingly over her frail body, sucked in every inch of her body in order to remember every part of it. His fascinated gaze lay on her breast, which rose and fell with every breath she took. He stared at it, mesmerized and unable to move.

When the medic stood up with a blood sample in her hand, he was withdrawn into reality again. He swallowed hard, embarrassed as he realized that he had languished an unconscious injured young woman. He did not even notice how the medic took out the sample.

Officer Levy ran straight to her microscope. He watched her as she studied the blood.

"And? Is she infected? " he wanted to know hoping that the answer would be no.

"Does not look like it. I can detect no viruses and no other abnormalities in her blood, "she replied, still focused on the image in the microscope. Relieved sighing, he closed his eyes.

"Nevertheless, we should be careful because ..." began the chief medical officer, but she was interrupted by a pained gasp.

Doyle's head spun around. He could hear a creaking, probably caused by Officer Scarlet who stood up abruptly from her chair and appeared next to Doyle.

Doyle looked down on the black-haired just as excited as the chief medical officer. Her eyelids fluttered and she was going to get back to consciousness.

"Soon we will know whether she is infected or not," Scarlet whispered with obvious tension in her voice.

Please don't be an infected zombie, Doyle pleaded while directing his weapon on the unknown girl.


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow! Got my first review. Thanks a lot!**

**Chapter 2**

Muffled voices, which she could not assign anyone, reached her ears. Her whole body ached, but the worst was the stabbing pain in the back of her head.

Her eyelids fluttered. Light penetrated her black lashes and burned in her eyes. Knee-jerk, she closed her eyes tightly. She tried to move her limbs laboriously, but not one of her aching body parts obeyed.

What just happened?, she wondered. Slowly, she dared to open her eyes again. With all her strength she raised her right arm to put it protectively over her eyes.

"Ugh", she moaned, her eyes half opened. Propping on both of her arms, she raised her upper body slowly; her look confused as she discovered that she was in an unfamiliar room.

"Hi", she heard a female voice she did not know. She turned her head immediately in the direction in which she located the owner of the voice.

Panicked, she looked up at a woman with black hair, but she was not the one who caused the panic in her, but rather the armed soldier standing next to her. Without thinking further, she immediately slipped as far away as possible. Her back hit the hard wall which prevented that she could veer away from the two figures along.

Rapidly breathing, she pressed her strained body against the cold wall, her frantic gaze searching for some means of escape. Nevertheless, she was sure that the soldier would shoot her if she tried to run away. She was trapped and defenseless against them.

Slowly, the black haired woman took a step closer, her hands raised, apparently to prove her that she would not hurt her.

"You don't have to be afraid. We won't harm you", she spoke slowly, probably because she seemed to be insecure herself.

The glance of the girl eyed her up accurately to figure out if she could trust her or not. Life had taught her never to trust anyone or never to show weakness, but that was exactly what she did. She had to prove them both and herself that she was not weak.

"Hard to believe when a gun is directed to you" she commented full of sarcasm.

The woman turned her gaze to the soldier. With a slight nod, she gave him a sign to put away his gun.

"What's your name?", the woman asked while coming closer. The soldier remained silent in the background, but she felt his piercing glance all over her.

"Isn't it polite to introduce yourself first?" she asked with more confidence, her body slowly relaxing.

The woman gave her a warm smile.

"My name is Scarlet Levy. I'm the chief medical officer of District one", she introduced herself.

Again, her eyes slid over the warm smiling woman who just introduced herself as Scarlet Levy. Of course she did not trust her just because she now knew her name. But at the moment she could not help but play along.

"Raquelle Guevara", was her sharp and curt response, her eyes still full of suspicion.

Raquelle Guevara. The Name did not sound very British, but Latin-American. Not only Doyle, but also Scarlet, who frowned quizzically, realized that.

"Guevara?" she dug deeper.

Raquelle rolled her eyes annoyed.

"Yeah, my…", she hesitated briefly which is why Doyle starred at her even more interested.

"My dad is originally from Brazil", she explained, her gaze was fixed on an unknown spot to avoid making eye contact with them.

Brazil. That suits her appearance, her honey-colored skin tone, her pitch-black hair, her caramel-colored eyes which are surrounded by thick black lashes, he thought while eyeballing her again. Even looking like a mess, Doyle could say that she was beautiful in her own way.

"And what are you doing in London?", Scarlet asked further with genuine interest.

Doyle observed Raquelle, who still looked away. He had to swallow hard as she bit on her full lower lip from nervousness, because it looked so damn sexy. With an effort he managed that his thoughts did not run in a direction which is not G-rated.

"My mum was British. I live here for 15 years", she mumbled. Discomfort apparently spread through her, as she scratched her left upper arm.

"Okay, Raquelle…how old are you?", Scarlet wanted to know.

Suspiciously, Raquelle glanced at the medic, not willing to tell her more.

"Listen. London was invaded by a virus…", the chief medical officer began, but Raquelle interrupted her immediately.

"I know. I was there", she said harshly with a hollow and bitter laughter.

"Why hadn't you been in evacuation?"

Again, her body moved in discomfort, her back pressed against the wall. Her behavior reminded Doyle to a prey which has been backed into a corner, probably she felt like one. The questions seemed to be more than unpleasant for her.

"Had something to do."

"Had no one noticed that you have been missing?"

"No one cares for petty crook", she murmured quietly to herself, before sighing in frustration.

Surprised, Doyle frowned and gazed at Raquelle again, this time without any perverted ulterior motives. Her body did not seem to be in the best condition, but rather seemed fragile and easy to break. But what can you expect? Who knows how long she was traveling alone and what she had eaten. However, he exchanged a questioning glance with Scarlet. Her eyes were determined and Doyle exactly knew what she wanted to say. They should keep that for themselves, who knows how the others would react to her criminal past.

"How did you manage to survive out there?", came out of Doyle's mouth without even noticing.

Fuck!, he thought and he would like to bite his tongue. Being a loudmouth had its drawbacks, you are not able to control your mouth and you never know what can come out of it. He had just risked that she would not tell much more. She was clearly just willing to talk to Scarlet and no one else, even not trusting her fully.

Scarlet looked at him briefly with slight disapprove. After muttering a quiet "sorry" the medic turned to the young woman.

"There was plenty of water and food in London. I've just taken what I needed from any shops. Sometimes I've only found expired stuff, but after three days without food, I had to force myself to eat the stuff. At first, I puked the expired food immediately, but after a while my body probably got use to it and I was able to keep a part of the stuff in my stomach", she explained, her face twisted in disgust at the memory of the expired food, "sometimes I was lucky and found fresh fruits and berries on trees and shrubs."

"Have you ever met an infected person?"

"Yes", she replied briefly.

"How could you escape them?"

"By running as fast as I could, I geuss."

"You guess? How well can you remember the past events?"

"The recent past day not particularly…hardly…almost nothing…I don't know." Again, she sighed in despair, as her right hand ran over her face.

Scarlet cleared her throat. Hesitantly she placed her hand on Raquelles knee, but that touch caused Raquelle to jump up slightly. Confused, she glanced at Scarlet's Hand, her thumb brushing gently on her ripped jeans.

"I know you are going to bristle, but I have to check you up. It's nothing bad, just a little health checkup. And I have to check on your head. And, well, I have to investigate your body for scars to exclude for sure that you…"

"That I'm not infected with the fucking virus", Raquelle ended bitterly groaning for her.

"Apparently, I don't have a choice", she muttered annoyed, "so, whatever."

"I have to check your whole body", the chief medical officer explained.

One of Raquelle's eyes hiked up before her eyes met Doyle. He was not able to react, let alone think straight, as he sank into her caramel-colored eyes.

"Sergeant, uh…", the medic addressed him, but he did not notice it.

"Sergeant", she called louder this time and took Doyle from his numbness back to reality. Only then he understood what has just been decided. Ashamed, he nodded clearing his throat. "Sure...I…uh…go out the door."

Hesitantly, he turned and went outside. In the corridor, he leaned against the cold wall, the door next to him still ajar.

The next moment, he heard a rustling of fabric and inwardly cursed his good ears.

She was just undressing.

Don't look! Just don't look Doyle! You're not a pervert, he warned himself.

His head dangerously moved to the side, but he spun his head back in time and closed his eyes. He stood silently for a while. With eyes shut his thoughts went back to the raven haired and probably naked young woman. He started fantasizing about her and her body. How she stripped. How her skin felt under his fingers. How she looked at him.

Fuck, he cursed his naughty thoughts, concentrate yourself Doyle!

"Well, your head injury is done. It is possible that you have a mild concussion. Let`s take a look at your body. Well, Raquelle, you apparently don't know anything about District one. After all the infected have died…", he heard the slightly absent voice of Scarlet who apparently checked Raquelle's body inch for inch.

"Died? You mean, there is no more of…those monsters?", Raquelle asked.

"No, not a single. That's why London is civilized again. District one is a security zone in which the former inhabitants of London return and continue a normal life again. I assume that you want to stay in London."

Raquelle did not answer, but she seemed to have nodded, because Scarlet continued speaking. "Good, then you have to stay in District one and you have to follow the rules. However, I need some information about you. Can I ask you about?"

Again, it was silent for a moment; he listened tensely until Scarlet's voice floated in his ears again.

"How old are you?"

"24."

"Are you born in London?"

"No. Philadelphia."

"USA?"

"Yes, my dad lived there and my mum met him there."

"Since when have you been living in London?"

"For 15 years."

"May I ask you why you have moved to London?"

"My mum wanted to."

"Aha. Your blood type?"

"B negative."

„Okay, you have no scars or injuries. Uh…listen, it is necessary that you have to take a shower."

"A real shower?", Doyle heard the delighted voice of Raquelle that elicited him a chuckle.

Amused, he shook his head as he continue listening.

"And where is the shower?"

"Over there. But this is not a normal shower, but serves to uh…kind of disinfection. You have to endure the shower."

"No problem, as long as I will get clean."

"I'll get you something to wear. Stay here and don't go away", Scarlet called as hear voice came closer to Doyle. Suddenly she appeared next to Doyle who straightened up in surprise and looked at her expectantly.

"Please tell General Stone, I'll take responsibility for her. She will stay with me for now and she will live in District one. She is not a danger for anyone and is definitely not infected" she spoke as she walked down the almost empty hallway, closely followed by Doyle. Abruptly, he stopped as Scarlet turned around to face him. Frowning, she looked at him quizzically.

"Was the door open all the time?", she wanted to know.

Ashamed, Doyle coughed and cleared his throat, totally aware what she asked implicitly. "Uh…yeah…seems so", he stammered, trying to brace himself somehow.

Scrutinizing and with her arms crossed over her chest she looked up at him.

"Just for the records, I' m taking care of her now. And I'm very protective."

"Yes ma'am", he brought out with a cough.

"Good", she said before she went along.

Doyle stared at her back for a while before following her again. Raquelle could mean danger for him because for him she is pure seduction.


	4. Chapter 4

**I know it took long and I am so sorry and I know that there is not much action in this chapter but I hope you'll still enjoy it. By the way thank you so much for reviewing and following etc. I was really suprised :)**

**Chapter 3**

"The fluid in the shower certainly was not water. That fucking etched. I thought my skin is burning" Raquellle complained as she joined the lab of Major Levy completely new dressed in a fresh clean outfit, consisting of a simple jeans and a T-shirt. It was a wonderful feeling to wear not dirty and ragged clothes. Her blue T-shirt, which she plucked, smelled beautiful after washing powder. She deeply inhaled the smell, which she had not able to smell for weeks.

"I'm sorry, I hope it hasn't hurt too much", the medic replied with an apologetic smile.

"It's alright" Raquelle muttered and walked to a mirror in the corner to view herself. Her own reflection seemed so strange to her that she had to look two times to identify herself. Apart from the fact that she had clearly lost a few pounds, she had almost forgotten her clean look. In the last weeks, her sight had been shabby and dirty, not beaming and fresh. It seemed to her as if she has been requickened.

Now, I just have to gain weight, I no longer want to look like a skeleton, she thought while shoving her shirt up. Her ribs were clearly in the offing. Raquelle sullenly watched her figure. Sighing, she put her shirt back down to turn back to Scarlet, who looked thoughtful, her head braced on one hand. After gazing over Raquelle, who now seemed to feel less uncomfortable than before, she began to speak.

"How are you feeling?, she asked in a voice that reminded Raquelle of a caring big sister, but that was exactly how she behaved. It was a strange feeling that someone was caring for you who did not even belong to the family. She was a totally stranger. In addition, she knew that Raquelle did not have a clean slate, but Scarlet did not seem to care about her past.

The raven-haired woman shrugged her shoulder listlessly to answer as she began to slowly walk through the lab and interested consider every single item of which she did not even know what it was.

"Well, I guess, better than the last few weeks", the younger replied with an absent voice.

She could feel Scarlet's scrutinizing gaze on her, watching every movement of her. But she did not care. She felt much more relaxed than before. Perhaps because she was clean and refreshed, even if the shower had almost corroded her skin. But maybe it was because of the fact that no soldier was present and pointing a gun at her.

What a jerk, she thought annoyed. Who points a gun at an injured and not even armed girl?, she wondered, simple ignoring the thought that people could consider her an infected with good causes. Admitting a fault was foreign to her nature.

"What are you going to do?", she was asked by Scarlet.

Raquelle froze in her movement.

Good question, what am I going to do? What shall I do? Or better, what can I do?, she wondered in complete silence. But she did not know any answer to that important question. She would prefer to continue her search for her father, but she definitely would not reveal that to Scarlet, after all it was not allowed to leave District one. And if she wanted to look for her dad again, she should keep this as her little secret.

"I don't know", Raquelle answered honestly. How was she supposed to answer the question if she did not know the life in District one?

"Are there really no infected anymore?" she asked without turning to Scarlet, her gaze clued on the steel table in front of her, her fingers sliding over die cold metal.

Unsureness grew inside of her, however, she tried to ignore it.

"No one is out there", Major Levy replied with a relieved undertone. The reply struck Raquelle like a shot.

Her stomach tightened immediately. No one. That included her father.

Desperated, the black haired girl bit her dry lower lip. Her bite was so strong that her lower lip started bleeding slightly. She would like to hole up at a corner, but her wish would not be fulfilled.

No one was out there. So was her father, wasn't he?

`But…they thought I haven't been out there. They were clueless 'bout me. So, it could be possible that Dad is somewhere hiding out there", Raquelle reasoned.

`And perhaps they are wrong and there are still some people infected with the rage virus.´ The appalling thought crossed her mind, but she tried to shake off the thought. Even if she had forgotten almost every memory of the past few days, she remembered some moments, horrific images of infected monster which flashed by her mind.

Moments where beastlike people had run after her. She could remember the feeling of panic and fear, which she could feel again throughout her body, very well.

Forcefully, she shook her head, her raven black hair swaying, before she turned to Scarlet.

"I don't know what I shall do know", she admitted finally while looking at the medic expectantly.

The medic smiled before getting up and stepping toward the black haired.

"Never mind, I'll help you, after all, I've took responsibility for you", she tried to cheer Raquelle up, petting her arm gently.

Raquelle was about to open her mouth, but she could forbear the comment that she is a 24 year old adult and mature enough to take care of herself. Major Levy tried to help her and she was not really an easy person.

"Whatever", she mumbled, not wanting to fight against a fact that she could not change.

"First, you need an apartment. I am going to look for a free one that you can move in."

"I've no money", Raquelle reminded herself.

"And that's one thing we also have to solve. You definitely need a job. A legal job", the medic added with a strict glance.

Raquelle rolled her eyes in annoyance, slowly really feeling like pubertal teenager.

"But, hey, you could assist me in the laboratory. I could need some support and at the same time I could take care of you", Scarlet said suddenly beaming.

"Hey, I'm not a little kid. I'm an adult, anyway I'm 24 years old", it finally slipped out of her mouth. It annoyed her to be treated like a child, after all she has looked for herself for years. In addition, Major Levy treated her as if she was made of glass, even the carefulness with which she touched Raquelle, made her see red.

"I'm totally aware of this, but you are not well versed in District one and the condition for not shooting you immediately was that I accept sole responsibility for you."

"Whoa, wait a sec. They wanted to kill me?", Raquelle wanted to know with a baffled expression on her face, her eyes widening in disbelief.

"Yes, because the possibility that you were an infected was high. As the kids have found you, you were lying unconsciously on…"

"Who have found me?", Raquelle interrupted Major Levy sharply.

"Two kids. They pulled out of District one and found you. That was a really lucky coincidence. Who knows what would have happened to you", Scarlet explained her.

"Wow, I should thank them both, I geuss", the black haired said, running a hand through her hair.

"And now", she wanted to know, her questioning gaze focused on the medic.

"Now, you have a job as my personal assistant. All you need know is somewhere to live, but I'm going to ask about that. I don't think that this will be a problem. After that we need a shopping date, because you definitely in need of clothes", the medic replied with wink, before turning around and walking toward the door.

"Can I ask you for a favor?", Raquelle made her stop just in front of the door. The chief medical officer turned to face her with a warm smile.

"Of course."

The discomfort which grew in her stomach caused her to scratch her arm, a habit which she could not get rid of and which she always did whenever she felt nervous.

"Could you find someone for me? Her Name is Jamila Greene. The last time I saw her was on the day of evacuation. She should go ahead and we should meet later. I'll stay with her, if she is living in District one. We used to live together before…you know…all this bloody crap happened, we…"

"Are friends?", Scarlet finished her sentence with a smile, feeling relieved that Raquelle is not completely alone.

But Raquelle corrected her: "She is family to me."

Encouragingly smiling, Scarlet looked at her: "I'm going to ask about her. Wait her for me, I'm back in some minutes."

"Thanks, Miss Levy?", Raquelle said feeling a little bit awkward.

"Call me Scarlet", Major Levy offered the young raven haired woman.

"Thanks Scarlet."

* * *

She was supposed to wait for Scarlet, but after waiting in a cold and cheerless lab for ten minutes, she felt extremely bored. She did not know anything about District one, not even how it looked like. After few steps into freedom, she recognized that District one seemingly was a normal town. Her gaze swept through the surrounding environment, trying to suck in every special feature. Skyscrapers, which sparkled due to the sun, rose from the ground all around her.

Wow, someone exerted oneself, she thought full of sarcasm, while walking on and shaking her head in disbelief.

People were walking on the streets as if nothing had happened. As if the rage virus had been a bad nightmare and they had just waked up. But it was not like that. Unfortunately it had not been bad nightmare.

That's it. That's the life after the virus, she thought and stopped, not knowing what she was supposed to do. Could she fit District one?

The only hint that not everything was normal was the armed soldiers on the streets and on the roofs Raquelle caught sight of. Out of curiosity she scanned the area to spot the soldier she had met in the lab. A ridiculous try since she barely remembered his appearance.

Sighing, she walked on as she heard snippets of a conversation.

"Are you aware of how irresponsible your behavior was? Leaving the security zone? What did you think would happen?"

Her glance slid to a small group. An older man who told two kids in front of him off. One of the kids was a quiet beautiful teenage girl with heavily waved blond hair and the other was a boy about ten or eleven year old with blond hair. Their sights were directed at the sidewalk and Raquelle immediately understood who the kids were.

"I guess, I have to thank you both", she addressed them while walking toward the group.

All three of them glanced to her in confusion. Just the girl seemed to recognize her finally.

"You probably saved my life", Raquelle went on smiling and hoped that she could somehow calm the man down. As she said the kids probably saved her life, so she could at least save them from house arrest.

"You should feel proud of such kids. Not everyone can be a hero", she continued to speak to the man, totally aware that she is exaggerating, "they're really brave, but leaving the security zone again would be stupid. Right?"

At first, both of the children were perplexed, probably because her sudden appearance, but still they nodded in agreement.

"So, thanks for...uhm…that. By the way my name is Raquelle Guevara, but you can call me Ray if you want to", she introduced herself with a warm smile.

"Tammy Harris. And that's my brother Andy", the sweet girl introduced herself and her younger brother while she returned Raquelle's smile.

"Pleased to meet you Tammy. And you have to be the father of the two brave runaways", she guessed turning to the man again.

"Yes, Donald Harris", he briefly introduced himself, slightly overstrained with her sudden appearance. Good, then he will forget to penalize the kids, Raquelle thought content.

"I have to go. I'll be happy if I run into you again", she took leave of them, winking at Tammy who glanced at her with a huge grin, before Raquelle turned away.

She should rather go back. Scarlet would be worried and there were too much soldiers after her fancy. One last time she intuitively searched the area for the soldier at the lab again, but she could not catch sight of him.


End file.
